5 Magical Marketing Lessons from Walt Disney World
I just returned from a trip to Florida, where my family took six kids under 11 years old to Walt Disney World.
I’ll spare you the details of our trip to Disney. (Although the video of my toddler meeting Mickey IS the cutest thing you could ever imagine.)
Instead, I’ll share something that could possibly be valuable to you: five marketing lessons I learned from going to Disney World.
Why Disney Is a Master of Marketing
Love it or hate it, Disney is a master of marketing.
I was reminded of this after buying my family’s tickets to the park a few weeks ago.
From the post-purchase email sequence to the interactive mobile app to literally every detail at the park itself, Disney World makes the entire experience feel magical.
Which, I’m sure, is why it has some of the most loyal fans in the (Disney) world.
But you and I don’t have the benefits of massive marketing budgets, decades of brand nostalgia, or a spellbinding fireworks show, set to epic music, illuminating a castle already lit up with everyone’s favorite cartoon characters.
So how can we make our marketing feel magical?
Here are five simple marketing lessons I learned, specifically from Disney’s emails, that any brand can apply to its messaging.
5 Email Marketing Tips from Disney World
1. Build Excitement
In the weeks leading up to our visit, Disney sent me several emails showing how to “get more magic out of your visit.” With each email, I got more pumped about all the cool things I’d be able to do on my (er, the kids’) big day.
2. Keep It Quick
Disney could send a thousand emails, each a thousand words long, about all the different things to keep in mind when visiting the park. Instead, I got a handful of succinct, super-scannable emails that made my upcoming visit feel manageable, not mind-boggling.
3. Upsell Seamlessly
Sure — dining, lodging, parking, merch, Lightning Lane Passes, Memory Maker, and a hundred other Disney products all cost extra. But when featured strategically in an email, surrounded by helpful tips and tools that don’t cost extra, these offers seemed smart, not sales-y.
4. Time It Right
Lightning Lane Passes are available three days before your visit. Guess when I received an email reminding me of this semi-urgent fact? Four days before my visit. (Plus another email five days before, and a reminder in another email a week before that.) Every email was perfectly timed to help me make the most of my visit.
5. End on a High Note
A few days after our visit, I received a simple email thanking me for “being our Guest” (see what they did there?). Unless you count the social icons at the bottom, there was no CTA, aside from “hope to see you again real soon.” Me too, Disney. Me too.
Let’s Make Your Messaging Magical!
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(Fireworks sold separately.)
